"It's not often that members of a band are literally set alight on stage or a lead singer fires incendiary devices from rocket launchers strapped to his arms.
That's why critics claim that Rammstein make a Marilyn Manson gig look like a Disney production."
- Nick Smith
Welcome to the Rammstein FAQ, my attempt at answering all the questions I once had about Rammstein.
I had trouble getting answers to the questions I had, and know that I have these answers, I decided to share them. Aren't I nice. I tried my best to keep
the size of this document to a minimum, so don't blame me if it's not a feat of graphic design.
The Band
Rammstein is:
Till Lindemann - Vocals
Christian 'Flake' Lorenz - Keyboards
Oliver Riedel - Bass
Christoph Doom Schnieder - Drums
Richard Kruspe-Bernstein - Guitars
Paul Landers - Guitar
Where they're coming from "We know each other from long ago. We had other bands together before forming Rammstein. You know doing music
or having the band rather, is more than just doing music it's a whole psychological process where you
get closer and closer and kind of create some harmony in being able to get along with each other in order to
work with each other and we hope that in the future we will be able to produce many more records. We grew up in the former
German Democratic Republic, the former DDR. Once the wall came down we built on our ground as having been members of
different punk bands. But we wanted to do some new music which should be different from the American and British kind of
music. This search for a new kind of music was quite a successful one and led us to create a whole new style which we call a
German style. Unfortunately that has put us close to what you would call right wing music and the whole right wing scene,
yet we are not at all to be established in that right wing sector., rather we are looking for a kind of German music and it's very unfortunate
that in New Zealand and Australia you often perceive the group as being on the right wing. Germans in general do have a problem with their
identity because of our very troubled history. So Germans of all ages ask themselves who are we? What are our roots?"
Schneider on who they are. So they're all German?
Yup. Where does the name 'Rammstein' come from?
At the 1988 Ramstein airshow, Italy's aerobatic team caused a massive air disater during a display. Thirty
spectators and three pilots were killed as planes collided into eachother and tumbled on fire into
the crowd. 60 more were injured. Though they did change the spelling by adding an 'M,' Rammstein got their
name from this incident, as their first song, 'Rammstein' is actually about the aircrash. Literally translated,
Rammstein means "Ramming Stone," quite an apt name, considering their style of music.
How many records have Rammstein released? What are they called?
Rammstein currently have three albums out. These are -
Mutter (Mother) April 3rd 2001 - Promo. Cat. No. 549 633-2 [13]. Pre-release preview copies are already in circulation.
All Rammstein material has been released through Motor Music.
Rammstein have also released a number of singles and EPs. These are-
Du riechst so gut
Seemann
Engel
Engel [Fan Edition]
Du hast
Das Modell
Du riechst so gut '98
Stripped
Sonne
Asche Zu Asche (EP, Australia only)
They have also released a number of rare and promo CDs not listed here, along with spots on compilation CDs.
Fact or Fiction?
Are Rammstein Gay?
If they are, not publically. All are married or otherwise engaged to non-men, and do not claim to be gay either. Are Rammstein Nazis?
Of course not! Probably simply due to the fact they are German and their style of music and lyrics,
Rammstein have been fighting claims of Nazism since they stepped out of Germany onto the international
arena. The only (supposed) link between Rammstein and Nazism is that Till rolls his Rs in a manner similar to Hitler.
As far as I know, manner of speech does not alter your political alignment. The cover of Herzeleid is also claimed
to be some kind of poster for an Aryan master race. Some people have too much time on their hands. So if Rammstein aren't gay, why does Till pretend to anally rape Flake?
Just a bit of stage theatrics and black humour. If you didn't laugh when you saw it, theres something wrong with you.
There is nothing serious behind this or any of Rammstein's other stage antics, which include self-whippings and other such acts. Did Till really used to get flourescent light tubes smashed over his body during concerts?
Yup. Real glass and real blood. Although I know they used to do this, I have heard nothing of them
doing it in the past few years. But they may still do it! Till still hits himself in the head with
the microphone until he bleeds, so don't count it out. Which CDs are 'Wut Will Nicht Sterben' (Anger would not die) and 'Schwarzes Glas' from?
"Wut Will Nicht Sterben' is a Puhdys song featuring Till doing some vocals. 'Schwarzes Glas' is a never-released track rammstein recorded before they had signed to a label. Many thanks to Jobarr from www.herzeleid.com for putting that out on MP3 and releasing that info. I heard something of Till being some kind of swimmer once.
As far as I know, Till was once part of the German olympic swim team. Will Rammstein ever release an album in English?
Not in the forseeable future. Rammstein have refused to bend to US demand and sing albums in English.
As far as I'm concerned, Rammstein sounds much better in German anyways. Only three tracks have been released in English. These
are -
Stripped
Engel
Du Hast. So did Rammstein's music actually have anything to do with the Coloumbine shootings?
Hell no. To even try to link Rammstein, or any other band, to such an act is insane. Music cannot make you get up and shoot people.
Lets face it, anyone who shoots that many kids for no reason are probably too dumb to know just what rammstein are singing about anyway.
The Music
What do all these damn German lyrics mean then?
Yes, when translated Rammstein's lyrics make for some, lets say 'Interesting' reading. Some
of the stranger songs are-
Weisses Fleisch - "White Flesh," about abusing small children.
Du Reichst So Gut - "You smell so good," Surely the title is enough.
Heirate Mich - "Marry Me," About some guy whose partner dies so he digs her up and... you can guess the rest.
Laichzeit - "Spawntime," About having sex a lot.
Tier - "Beast," A father who molests his daughter.
Bestrafe Mich - "Punish Me," A lovely tale of masochism.
Bück Dich - "Bend Down" About anal sex.
Spiel Mit Mir - "Play with me" Incestual brotherly love.
If you want the full lyrics to all of Rammstein's lyrics then I suggest you visit the sites linked
at he bottom of this page. Why do they sing about all this usually digusting stuff then? "The music might seem aggressive, that's true. It is aggressive but it's not right wing. They (the songs) all
deal with love. Obviously when they are sung in German they can seem very extreme, all kinds of extreme
forms of love. The words are sometimes almost violent but it certainly isn't martial arts we are talking
about here. It's rather about inter-personal relationships."
That's what Christoph Schneider has to say on the matter, anyways. When is the new Rammstein album coming out then?
April 23rd, 2001. The first single, Sonne, is already availible, but only in Europe & Germany. The Style
"Our style came out of knowing exactly what we didn't want. We didn't want to make American rock music or punk,
that's something we couldn't do at all. We realised we can only make the music we make, which happens
to be kind of simple and melodious. We wanted to mix machines and homemade music." And this they do very well.
A mix of grinding guitar and electronic background tunes and melody, Rammstein's unique industrialist style
is amplified by the nature of Till's voice and the German language. Rammstein sounds much less impressive in english.
Self-described as 'Tanzmetall' (dance-metal), Rammstein's style and lyrics raise many eyebrows, approving or otherwise. "Our background would be groups such as Kraftwerk and also older artists, such as Wagner. All have
had an influence on our music. You will have quite a surprise when you see us. There are quite a number of
show details in the whole show which is not very typical of a rock band. There are pyrotechnics, fireworks and we
do feel we are as theatrical as Wagner in his operas. Wait until we will be there on stage and you will
see what it is really all about!"
Christoph offers his views.
Herzeleid
What's with the flowers?
Can't answer that one. The flowers are a nice contrast to the stark cover of Sehnsucht, though. Who's that inside?
From front to back, the pictures are of- Richard
Paul
Till
Flake
Christoph
Olli. Different Covers?
I'm not sure, but I think Herzeleid was released in the US with a different cover to the rest of the world.
Sehnsucht
Do all the covers have that cool silver stamped on the case?
No. Some special releases of Sehnsucht have the titles put on the case upon a sticker. I only know of this
happening in Australia, on a 'Special' live in Australia edition. This bonus CD just contains tracks lifted directly from Live aus Berlin and Herzeleid. Is my 'Limited edition' really limited?
Bearing white special edition stickers, most copies of Sehnsucht printed during and after 1998 have the
Single 'Stripped' included. Stripped is a cover of a Depéche Mode song by the same name. It is sung in english. Availible as
a single, Stripped was originally made for the compilation CD 'For the masses'. However, as far as I know, they have not
yet stopped printing CDs like this and I don't know if they ever will. So chances are, your CD is an edition
limited only by the amount of copies they can sell. Ironically, the original release is harder to find than
the limited edition. On which CDs can I find the english versions of Du Hast and Engel?
These two tracks can only be found on US printed editions of Sehnsucht. Due to the xenophobic
nature of the US, there was a large call for Rammstein to release a CD in english. These two tracks
are as close as Rammstein will come to releasing an all English CD according to what they have said. So is that Australian live edition worth buying then?
Not if you already have Herzeleid and Sehnsucht. As far as I know, all 6 tracks have been taken directly from these CDs. What the hell is with that cover?
I don't know. It's undeniably odd. I can't explain it and I havn't read anything else with them explaining it. Just another piece of Rammstein shock tactics,
I guess.
Live Aus Berlin
What's all those odd banging noises?
Explosions. And Till hitting himslef with the microphone, throwing it etc. Watch the video or see them live to truly appreciate it. That's one damn cool cover.
Doesn't it just kick ass? I reckon it cranks. Is Flake really a 'Doktor' like it says in the legal bits?
Not as far as I know. Who's the woman in the cage during 'Engel?'
That would be Bobo. She does the vocals on the CD, too. But don't get your hopes up, she doesn't tour everywhere with Rammstein. What about all those people with the torches on the stage?
There was a contest on Berlin radio to win backstage passes and be part of the show. The people with the torches and lights are those winners. Is that girl on top of the stage during 'Tier' Till's daughter?
Curiosly enough, though her name is 'Lindemann', she is Richard Kruspes' daughter. Long story, but he got involved with Till's wife after they broke up.
Mutter
When was Mutter released?
Mutter was released in Europe on April 3rd & the US on the 4th, 2001. What singles have been released from Mutter?
The tracks 'Sonne,' 'Links 234,' & Ich Will have been released on single as yet.
And the tracklist for Mutter is?
Mein Herz Brennt (My Heart Burns)
Links 234 (Left 234)
Sonne (Sun)
Ich Will (I Want)
Feuer Frei! (Fire Free!)
Mutter (Mother)
Spieluhr (Musical Clock)
Zwitter (Hermaphrodite)
Rein Raus (In Out)
Adios (Goodbye)
Nebel (Smoke) What's this I hear about different versions of Mutter? What's different about the tour edition?
The tour edition of mutter has 4 extra live tracks on it: Sonne, Links 234, Ich Will and Spieluhr. These songs were availible from rammstein.com as MP3s for a while. It has also been suggested that an instrumental (Maybe part) orchestral version of Mutter may be released in the future. What's so special about the limited edition digipack?
The ltd edition digipack came with a nice set of artwork on it, and also included a free poster that now in it's creased beauty adorns walls all over the world. It also doesn't fit in anyone's CD racks either, thanks to it being a larger case. It even locks shut with a magnet! Spectacular!
Rammstein - Live and Loud
So do Rammstein really set themselves and various other stuff on fire on stage?
You better beleive it. Flamethrowers, flaming boots, drumsticks, clothes, microphones, anmplifiers, and
various other props quite literally go off. Front row eyebrows are destined for a firey end. Whats this butt-rape dildo thing I keep hearing about?
Well, Till pretends to rape Flake with a dildo. Duh. It's part of the show during Bück Dich. And don't worry, its all plastic. When are Rammstein visiting my town then?
Check the dates section on the official site. If you can see Rammstein live, then do so. Even if you didn't like the music, you'd still enjoy
the show. It rocked my world. It's bound to rock yours. So can they actually play live? Or is Live Aus Berlin totally remastered?
Hell Yeah! Rammstein sounded better on stage than on any CD when I saw them. They truly are good muscicians,
and do not need a studio to make a clean sound. "This was a show of solid-rock proportions, as solid as the lead vocalist's cod piece, in fact.
And while there were some 'unique' stage antics (Let's just leave it at that) during 'Bück Dich' and amazing pyrotechincs thoughout the set,
this was a quality show for musical reasons too." (Hype, Feb 8, 2001) "There is no way possible Limp Bizkit, or even Powderfinger for that matter could have topped
Rammstein's stage show." (Xpress, Feb 8, 2001) And the raft?
Yes, they do go crowdsurfing in a raft.
And if you can't make it to a concert, I highly recommend the video of 'Live Aus Berlin.' Televisual entertainment at it's best.
If you can't see anything past this line it's because you own a mac. Buy a good computer to recitify the problem. Thanks.
More & Where to Get it
If you want to hear Rammstein, buy the CDs. Don't be a thieving Poorarse, go out and buy it instead of downloading it all. Give these people the money they deserve.
More info on Rammstein? There's a whole world of both quality and not-so-quality Rammstein sites out there. My favourites are- The Rammstein Needed Down Under Organisation - A site devoted to getting Rammstein to drag their German arses down here instead of going to America all the time... both you and I know the yanks don't deserve it! www.herzeleid.com - My favourite Rammstein site. The best place for news, info, pics and rare (And Legal!) MP3s. Worth many a look. www.myxin.com - Also a quality site, it lacks the visual appeal of Herzeleid. www.rammstein.com - Limited only really by it's officialness, it's a great looking site that has to wait for official news releases. But otherwise, it has some great bits and pieces. Definately wirth a hit. Povski! Ruski! - My site. Not really Rammstein, but theres a good Rammstein winamp skin there for ya.
Got a question you think should be posted here? I'd like to here it, and hopefully answer it. Mail me with any more FAQs, ideas or feedback. I do appreciate it.
